Not going to lie, I requested this book because I'm a massive Suede fan and was excited to see what Osman could do with a historical fantasy novel. The premise sounded intriguing—a secret theatre troupe in Elizabethan London, mixed with supernatural elements—but unfortunately, it didn’t quite work for me. While the atmospheric setting and historical detail were impressive, I struggled to connect with the characters and found the pacing uneven. I really wanted to love it, but the story just didn’t capture my imagination the way I hoped it would. It had potential, but ultimately, it fell short for me. Review not posted anywhere else.

TRIGGER WARNING: historical animal abuse, sexual exploitation of children and violence
London, 1601. Shay is swept up in the world of the Elizabethan theatre when she befriends Nonesuch, a teenaged actor. Soon Shay finds herself performing and capturing the attention of the queen herself...
The Ghost Theatre is an historical novel with supernatural and fantasy elements, set in the 1600s.
Shay makes a new friend in Nonesuch and becomes immersed in the life of the theatre. But her own skills in a religious sect make her a target and put her in danger. There is a true grittiness and realism to the descriptions of the risks of being unconventional during this era.
I have very mixed feelings about the historical aspects to the plot being combined with fiction. Queen Elizabeth I appears as a diminished old woman, thoroughly unimpressive which is probably quite realistic. I found the addition of the Aviscultans interesting but it was completely made up so had no historical accuracy or basis. Shay makes prophecies but has no memory of them so a gap was created that frustrated me.
The writing style is rich and descriptive so I found myself engaged with the characters and plot. There is a darkness to the tone which creates a tense atmosphere of fear. However, I really wanted to love this book but overall it fell short of my expectations. The ending was sparse on detail and left me disappointed.
The Ghost Theatre is a vividly imagined historical book.

Magical read, very enjoyable.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for letting me read an advance copy of this book in exchange for my review.

What a stunning and unique tale. I love books set in Elizabethan England and with the added touch of magic 🪄 with Shay, the protagonist, and her spellbinding relation with birds, it really felt like nothing I've read before

Set in Elizabethan England, this is a magical tale with wondrous writing. I was completely enthralled!

The Ghost Theatre was one of those books that had me heading straight to Google. I was looking up “Aviscultan religion”. It doesn’t actually exist, but it sounds like it should.

Shay is an Aviscultan, but she is distracted from her home and way of life when she meets Nonesuch and his fellow young thespians at the Blackfriars theatre. She falls in love with him, neglects her failing, blind father, and eventually becomes something of a celebrity when she uses her ability to predict the future for Queen Elizabeth I. Soon, all wealthy Londoners want to see her, and the owner of Blackfriars theatre realises he can make some serious money out of Shay.

This is an exciting story with lots of running-across-rooftops-action, but I thought the real magic was in the descriptions of the narrow London streets, the smells, sights, the people and the animals. The descriptions of the birds, especially that of Devana, Shays falcon friend, truly expressed the wonder and reverence that Shay and her fellow Aviscultans had for all birds - and frankly, I can’t see what would be bad about a belief such as this!

The fact that a rebellion could be stoked by a guerrilla theatre group - a Ghost Theatre - showed the power of art, theatre and stories.

This is a mesmerising book; I was completely immersed in the birds, the magic and the dark London streets. And I didn’t want it to end.

Highly recommended.

A beautifully written fantasy novel that takes places in an alternative London in the 1600’s. Shay is a great character; a messenger girl, falconer and fortune teller, seeing the future in the patterns of birds.
I don’t read many fantasy novels but was intrigued by this book and I wasn’t disappointed, a wonderful engrossing story that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Mat Osman has been at The Edinburgh Book Festival, so within my review is a little about that, intermingling in my book review of The Ghost Theatre.

The Ghost Theatre is set in Elizabethan times. First, there’s the cast of people at Blackfriars Theatre, who perform for the gentry. Later, the cast in Blackfriars, form a new theatre - The Ghost Theatre. This causes a different dynamic, in dramatic style. The start of the book has a list of cast members who appear in the book and has acts as it goes along. There are other books that are theatrical and some do this. I rather like it as it goes along with what you would see in the likes of a programme for a theatre show. It also means you know in advance who you're going to "meet", so starts to set the scene before the layering that up when the story/performance begins.

Shay is the main character. She has more than just foresight, she can see the future, as well as train hawks. She is an interesting character, full of an aura of intrigue and mystique, which keeps you wanting to read more, to find out where her story takes you. She can tell you a lot about the birds and studies the murmuration. She, herself is more at home on rooftops than anywhere else. Shay has an aura and energy that just captures your attention with ease, along with the setting, which becomes immersive. It is a book that you can almost see being on a stage, any stage within the UK.
Nonesuch is an intriguing supporting character to Shay. Nonesuch is quite a chancer in life. A talk I went to see at the Edinburgh Book Festival, where Mat Osman was talking about the characters, said it wasn't always the case that Shay was going to be the main character, Nonesuch was, but Shay emerged as such.

A bit about the talk at the Edinburgh Book Festival, before returning to the book

The Ghost Theatre, once formed, goes from strength to strength. Shay is a young actor and at the Edinburgh Book Festival, the topic of child-stars rise and down-fall was talked about and that of being "pushed" into the limelight. It was truly fascinating, as well as heart-breaking, since we see this happen a lot in today's society. It was interesting to hear his perspective on such a huge topic. He also talked about writing and the differences between writing a book and how solitary that is to working with a band and producer, where the feedback is harder-hitting and more immediate.

Mat Osman talked about theatre and how it all goes back to Shakespeare (who would have then been inspired by earlier playwrights), and in just 10 years of theatre, what we see today, was created. Mind-blowing isn't it? From today's actors, directors, scriptwriters and more for theatre, it all has thanks to Shakespeare and his fellow playwrights and creators of theatre in that decade. He mentioned this because of his book being set in his times and also due to the theatrical element.

He also talked about how the process of writing a song is quicker than writing a book as by the end of a day you can have a complete song with the tune and lyrics being right. It was incredibly refreshing to hear him speak so openly and so honestly about it. It was hugely insightful and something that I had never heard people talk about before in the way he did, when it comes to the challenges. It was raw and clearly, his truth. I have to say, this impressed me. 

Going back to the book:

Osman cleverly curates a London that is both fantastical and earthly, with The Ghost Theatre, mysteriousness and alternativeness of place, as well as encompassing the plague and the class system. He ensures there is grounding, within the Elizabethan times, which he writes in, even though there is something fantastical about it and it works rather well.

Whether you like books set in the theatre, historical fiction, general fiction, realism, magic, this book has it all and something for everyone as a "pull" into its land.

If you are ever fortunate enough to see Mat Osman talk, then I highly recommend it. You're in for an entertaining and very insightful time.

Bewitching, transporting, and by the bassist of Suede? An unexpected combination, but one that works. Magical and beautifully evocative

Set in an alternate Elizabethan London (in 1601), this is the story of Shay, messenger girl, falconer and fortune teller, seeing the future in the patterns of birds. She gets involved with Nonsuch, star of Blackfriars Theatre, which relies on a cast of kidnapped boys who perform for the gentry. Falling in love with both Nonsuch and the theatre leads Shay into a new life, but when Nonsuch decides to form the Ghost Theatre - a kind of pop-up performance, chaos ensues in a London beset by plague and unrest. When Shay gives readings on stage, she sets herself in for a whole lot of trouble, drawing attention from the Queen, but also from more unsavoury characters. Expect, kidnapping, violence, disease and betrayal. This is innovative and original, but it's not a happy read.

Wonderfully written and fantastical. The characters are brought to life beautifully, the back drop Elizabethan London, the storyline engrossing, Thoroughly enjoyed and would recommend

This was such an interesting read! I found myself so engrossed in the story, the characters had such incredible arcs, and I can't wait to follow this author's journey!

meanders around far too much in the beginning for my liking. the back fourth was pretty strong, i'm glad that it came together, but i didn't have the patience for a majority of it

I struggled with this book and lost track of what was happening. I do think it is cleverly written and for many this will be a fantastic story it just didn't work for me.

I found this book hard to follow although what I read I enjoyed in parts but found it not for me. I grappled to grasp where it was going and to stay focused while reading it the main character shay lost my attention and I left it be.

“The gods are birds and the birds are gods. She let its cadence guide her feet. The gods – step – are birds – step – and the birds – step – are gods – leap.”

My thanks to Bloomsbury Publishing U.K. for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘The Ghost Theatre’ by Mat Osman.

Shay is a messenger girl, who is more comfortable using the rooftops of Elizabethan London than its streets. She is a flapper - not the Jazz Age kind - but an Aviscultan, a member of a nomadic people who worship birds and live in a community beyond the city known as Birdland. Shay, as with a few of her people, has the ability to tell the future via murmurations, the patterns formed by flocking birds.

Shay’s father had been a master falconer before becoming blind. Shay had apprenticed with him and continues to care for Lord Eltham’s prized falcon, Devana.

Like all her people, Shay is very protective of birds and frees them from captivity whenever possible. One such adventure finds her fleeing from a shop owner and his men. She encounters Nonesuch, the dark star of the city's fabled child theatre scene, as famous as royalty yet lowly as a beggar. He helps her evade her pursuers and introduces her to the world of the theatre.

Over time they create The Ghost Theatre: a troupe staging magical plays in London's hidden corners. Yet as their fame grows they become swept up in the dark web of the Elizabethan Court, where Shay and Nonesuch discover that if they fly too high, a fall is sure to come. No further details to avoid spoilers.

‘The Ghost Theatre’ was an incredible work of literary historical fiction that contains elements of the fantastical. I was stunned by the beauty of Osman’s prose as well as his vision of Elizabethan England. I had enjoyed Osman’s debut, ‘The Ruins’, though with ‘The Ghost Theatre’ I feel that he has soared high into new territory.

From her first appearance leaping from roof to roof, I fell in love with Shay. I am certain that her story will remain with me for a long time. Of course, there are plenty of other amazing characters within its pages: Lord Nonesuch, Trussell, an actor and artist, Alouette, who does their lights and props, Blank, theMoorish musician, and other members of the Blackfriars troupe. Shay appears to be something of a Wendy to these lost boys and girl. In addition, there are cameos from Doctor John Dee and the ageing Queen Elizabeth.

Overall, I found ‘The Ghost Theatre’ an incredible novel that completely transported me into Osman’s vision of Elizabethan England. His fictional Aviscultans were an inspiration and I felt that the entire novel was rich in a reverence for the deep magic of the natural world.

Very highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher Bloomsbury for the digital ARC, it has not affected my honest review.

TW: death, violence, implied sexual assault, animal death and cruelty, major character death, slavery

"The Ghost Theatre" is unlike any book I've read this year and I'm definitely going to be thinking about it for a long time, especially because I can't quite sum up what I loved about it. This book is set within Elizabethan London and follows Shay, a girl disguising herself as a boy as she runs messages for the richest people in London while also working as a falconer and a fortune teller. She is unlike everyone else: she is a Aviscultan, a religion that worships birds as gods, Shay also frees them from cages all across London. After being hunted across the rooftops, Shay meets Nonesuch- a mysterious boy who is the star performer of the Blackfriars Theatre. He can be anyone, whether it's Cleopatra or a pirate or simply a broken soul, and Shay soon falls in love with both him and the world of the theatre. As things worsen in London during Elizabeth's purges of Catholics and plague ravages the streets, Shay begins to make a name for herself as the Sparrow, but it's not just an act- she is genuinely telling fortunes that predict the downfall of everything they know. On the back of this Nonesuch and the Blackfriars troupe create the Ghost Theatre, where everything that can't be said is brought to life. Shay is made to give a fortune reading to Elizabeth and soon enough England is calling for more than just Nonesuch and the Ghost Theatre, but for Shay herself.

I'm so emotionally conflicted with this book, it swept me away within a few pages but it never fully reached the potential I hoped for it. I adored Shay and her gradual love affair with the theatre, which also tied into her relationship with Nonesuch and the other boys in the troupe. Her experiences as a religious outsider in London was well written and her desperation to keep her culture alive while also fighting to be respected at the same time was powerful. One of the highlights of this book was the scene in which Shay meets Queen Elizabeth and predicts her future, though I also loved when Shay was forced to tour the north of England during the plague. The prose and world that Mat Osman builds is so beautifully stark but also so powerful, so I'm glad I got to read this book, even if I don't fully understand how I feel about it.

I was sent a copy of The Ghost Theatre by Mat Osman to read and review by NetGalley. I absolutely adored this novel! It is beautifully written with fabulous characters and an amazing sense of place, and The Birds! Oh how I loved the birds! There is a really wonderful and engrossing storyline with an underlying sense of magic running through it. Just please read it and enjoy it for yourself!

I liked the setting in Elizabethan London and the exploration of the basics of city life. However I really did not like the fantasy aspect of the story as I don't enjoy that genre.

This is sharp, beautifully written and incredibly powerful. I have been completely pulled in from very early on in this one. It has definitely been a book that is bound to be a success.